Mentors matter

Here are a few anecdotes:
After my PhD defense, the plan was to stay in the lab for a year before leaving for my postdoc. I realized I was pregnant just when my contract was up for renewal. When Genevieve mentioned my pregnancy to the HR director, she said that, in this case, there was no need to offer me a contract and that I would be better off at home collecting unemployment benefits. Fortunately, Genevieve insisted, and I got the one-year contract.
When I was pregnant for the second time, I was in Switzerland. The occupational physician forbade me from working at the bench starting in my third month of pregnancy, even though I was only doing yeast genetics and microscopy. Again, my PI, Susan Gasser, had to insist so that I could perform experiments that were not harmful.
After I passed the CNRS competition, the chair of the committee who had previously discouraged my application on the grounds that my profile was not suited to the genetic and genomic section called to congratulate me and say that I had "charmed the entire committee." When I hung up, I was a little confused. However, when I told my PI about it, she immediately said that it was unacceptable and that he could be sued for that statement. I didn't do anything, but her reaction helped me not feel delegitimized.
When I received one of my first competitive grants, a nice male colleague who did not receive the grant told me that it helped to be a woman.

These are small things, but I want to stress that I was lucky to have very supportive mentors. I’m not sure I would have taken the same path in a different environment.